By Nandini Jayakrishna, Times Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
TAMPA — Opening statements began Tuesday morning in the trial of Donald Dankert, accused of first-degree murder in the December 2003 death of his 4-month-old son.
Prosecutor Debra Bell told jurors that Dankert's account of how his son Dylan sustained injuries did not correspond with doctors' assessments. But public defender Theda James said the baby's death occurred due to hospital delay in what was a "tragic accident."
On the morning of Dec. 19, 2003, Dankert says he was at home holding Dylan when a dog barked. Startled, he says he dropped the baby, and then jerked up his leg as if to break the fall. He caught Dylan by the ankle. Afterward, something seemed off about the baby's eyes, and Dankert took him to University Community Hospital.
Assessing the baby's condition to be critical, doctors performed CPR and other life-saving techniques, Bell told jurors. But they decided he needed surgery and should be transferred to St. Joseph's Hospital.
Bell told the jury that doctors will later testify that the baby's injuries were more severe than what Dankert's account seem to suggest. Medical examiners say the injuries included a lacerated intestine, bruised head and broken ribs.
But James said the hospital took too long to transport Dylan to St. Joseph's. She also told jurors that medical examiners do not agree on when Dylan was injured, saying that he could have been injured four to 48 hours before he was hospitalized. She said the baby's mother, Tanya Gruce, had changed his diaper and taken care of him that morning.
"We know what, but we don't know when," James said. "If we don't know when, then we don't know who … and that means that you must find Mr. Dankert not guilty."
Dankert is also charged with one count of child abuse in a 2008 incident in Pinellas County that occurred while he was out on bail. That trial is scheduled for October.